DB-03Work out your wall type and check what's behind itTap the wall around your mark. Solid brick or block sounds dull and solid all over. Lath and plaster feels slightly springy and sounds hollow with a faint rattle — common in Victorian and Edwardian houses. Plasterboard on studs sounds hollow between fixing points roughly every 400-600mm; run a magnet or detector along to find the fixing line, then drill a small pilot hole at one point — timber dust means timber studs, fine steel swarf means metal studs. Dot-and-dab plasterboard sounds hollow with firmer patches every 300-600mm where adhesive dabs sit behind it. Before you drill anywhere, run your detector over the whole area, but still treat it as if a cable or pipe could be there — detectors miss cables that are deep, in metal conduit, or behind metal-backed board, and a metal stud frame can confuse a cheap detector further. Find your stopcock (usually under the kitchen sink) and check it turns freely, so you can shut the water off fast if you ever hit a pipe.